


Take A Break And Let Me Love You

by ciels_trashland



Category: Gotham (TV)
Genre: A tiny smidge of angst, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal, No beta we die like Tabby here, Post Season 5, Post Timeskip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-24
Updated: 2020-09-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:53:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,450
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26624728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ciels_trashland/pseuds/ciels_trashland
Summary: Oswald Cobblepot was never really a fan of waking up. It was the same way every time, every day, and Oswald begrudgingly accepted this as the usual routine of a hard-working man; he'd slept and awoken in worse places after all."Good morning Oswald."Edward Nygma was not a normal part of his routine.
Relationships: Oswald Cobblepot/Edward Nygma
Comments: 7
Kudos: 64





	Take A Break And Let Me Love You

**Author's Note:**

> So... there was a war of angst, so @Chierei started a war of fluff to lighten the mood... I willingly answered the call... If I lose this war, I really have no one to blame but myself if I'm honest. However, I do like fluffy things, Oswald things, and I also need to actually post on here. So, this is my first piece. I hope you all like it

Oswald was never really a fan of waking up. Getting up at an ungodly hour, there was always the glare of the dulled Gotham sky streaming in through his window, the movements of the waitstaff in his bedroom as they worked to give him his breakfast, the dread in his bones as he was forced to pull himself out from underneath the cozy warmth of his duvet and into the chill of the rest of the world. It was the same every time, every day, and Oswald begrudgingly accepted this as the usual routine of a hard-working man; he’d slept and awoken in worse places after all.  
It was the same this morning too: dull but surprisingly strong light, the, albeit quieter, footfalls of smart shoes on wooden floorboards and the contrasting tugs in Oswald’s bone to both get out of and stay in bed. The former always won, Oswald using his arms instead of his feet to pull himself into a seated position.

“Good morning, Oswald.”

Edward Nygma was not a normal part of his routine. Edward Nygma, by this point, was either fast asleep in his own room still or hadn’t slept at all, instead using his time to continue working on his next riddle or improve the devices on his own cane. 

But there he stood, his usual green attire gleaming in the light of the window as he picked up a tray on Oswald’s desk. It was then that Oswald noticed that none of his usual staff were in the room, leaving himself and Edward alone. 

“Ed, what are you doing here? Where are my staff?”

Edward rolled his eyes and gave a nonchalant wave of his hand. “I sent them away from your room. I wanted to be the one to wake you.” He then set the tray over Oswald’s lap, leaning over to give him a soft kiss on his forehead. “I can be decorated but I’m not a house, I can be boiled but I’m not a kettle, I have a shell but I’m not a crab, I can be cracked but I’m not a joke. What am I?”

Oswald rolled his eyes, “An egg.”

Ed chuckled and pulled back the silver cover to show a gorgeous arrangement of fried eggs, bacon and fish fingers. “Hopefully, this should motivate you to get out of bed, I also made sure to pick out your outfit for the day.”

Oswald could only scoff, “I’m a grown man, Ed. I know how to look after myself and choose my own outfits,” before making a start of the delicious-looking breakfast.  
“I know, but I wanted to make sure you looked nice on your day off.”

Day off? Oswald had the Iceberg Lounge to continue preparing for the grand opening in a few weeks’ time. He had no time to spare to take a day off. The incredulous look he shot Ed’s way apparently said enough, as he simply chuckled and sat on the edge of Oswald’s bed. 

“I know what you’re thinking, but I asked a good friend of ours to oversee everything for today.”

“What ‘good friend’ would that be?”

“Barbara, obviously.”

Oswald sighed. He and Barbara were on ambiguous terms after the birth of Barbara Lee, despite himself and Ed being named as godparents to the child. He trusted her as far as he could walk without his cane, but he supposed he was being a bit unreasonable there: he had never been very trusting in the first place. Plus, they shared a similar style when it came to décor, and Barbara was a strong, sure businesswoman now, and she knew how much the Iceberg Lounge meant to him; he could trust her with his pride and joy, but only for one day.

With a defeated sigh, he sat back, licking his lips and feeling a little calmer at the mixed taste of bacon and egg on his tongue. “Alright, fine, I’ll accept one day off. What did you have planned, Eddie?”  
The terrifyingly cheeky grin that spread over Ed’s face at his acceptance was enough to send a shiver down his spine.

~~~  
By the time they reached dinner, Oswald was an equal mixture of pleased and famished. 

To start with, Edward had taken him to Gotham City Park. Oswald was surprisingly happy with Ed’s clothing choice for him today, the soft feathering along the rims of his favourite velvet coat made him feel powerful and the coat kept him warm against the usual frigid temperatures of Gotham. Once there, they had walked hand in hand along the Finger River and Oswald had let Ed ramble about his new plans. Ed clearly had no qualms about being overheard, the excitement visible on his face and in his voice as he described, in excruciating detail, his next plan to outwit The Batman. By the botanical gardens, Oswald swore he saw an incredibly unusual flower, definitely one of Ivy’s flowers growing amongst the roses. If he so happened to ‘accidentally’ trip and drop enough notes to pay for a bag or two of fertilizer next to the flower, he doubted that anyone would notice. 

Their next stop was for lunch, and Oswald could only chuckle when Ed guided him inside a quaint little coffee shop. The espresso he ordered was exactly what he needed to keep himself awake, strong with just a hint of vanilla, and he laughed when he noticed Ed growing even more excited in his descriptions of his fights after drinking his entire latte. They stayed there for a few hours, Oswald slowly finishing his own drink whilst Ed seemed fine to talk enough for them both.

Their next stop was the Iceberg Lounge because Oswald had insisted. Being more alert meant he felt the itching in his brain to get to work and check in on how preparations were going. So, Edward had obliged and driven him to the lounge to check on everything. Barbara greeted them with a smile, curious as to why they were there.  
“Because my boyfriend is a workaholic,” Edward pouted, and Oswald could only chuckle in response.

“Well, I hope your boyfriend finds it comforting that the preparations are going smoothly. The structure is just as sound as it was ten years ago, and the introduction of sound-proof walls is making good progress. So,” she grabbed Oswald’s hands in her own and looked at him with pleading eyes, “I promise you, the Iceberg Lounge is not going to fall apart just because you don’t check on it for a day. I have it under control.”

“See Ozzie?” Ed leaned on Oswald’s good side, his eyes practically pleading with him, “everything’s absolutely fine! Let’s go to dinner, we don’t want to be late!”

Oswald grumbled but relented, allowing Ed to drag him through the front doors and hearing Barbara’s pointed call of “see you tomorrow, Oswald!” He decided to listen, the trip had calmed him enough anyway.

The restaurant was Ed took him to was much more relaxed than he had expected. He had expected Ed’s preferred taste: chandeliers, red carpets, dark wooden furniture. Instead, the room was lit by candles on each table and candles on the walls. The flooring and walls were made from mahogany panels and the furniture was all crafted from rosewood. Soft silk tablecloths rested over every tabletop and a soft tune played from the jukebox in the corner. The best part, however, was the complete lack of other people: not a soul besides himself and Ed, except for the waiter who stayed inside the kitchen most of the time with the chefs, peeking his head through the circular glass pane in the door every so often.

Ed poured them each a glass of Dominio del Plata Nosotros and they clinked their glasses together gently. “Have you enjoyed your day off?” Edward asked, once Oswald had taken a sip of the wine.  
“I did, despite not liking the idea of taking a day off of work. I do appreciate you letting me check in though, it meant a lot.” Oswald reached across, taking Ed’s hand in his own and giving him a gentle smile. Ed smiled in return. “I am, however, incredibly hungry, so if we could please have dinner now before we head home?”

Ed laughed and clapped his hands twice, and in a bustle of movement, the waiter came out carrying two plates covered by silver food domes. Oswald gave Edward a raised eyebrow over the plates of food now set in front of them. “I had a silver dome on my breakfast this morning, and you even tried the same trick with a silver spoon when you brought back my espresso. Do you insist on surprising me with everything I consume today?” The cheeky grin that spread across Ed’s face said it all.

Oswald smirked and pulled back the silver dome, his eyes fixed on his partner. “Well, my dear Riddler, I hope you know that, by this point, you could do truly little to surprise me. I have known you too long for you to be able to shock me so-” He looked down, taken by surprise at the dish sat in front of him. 

It was goulash, the same goulash his mother would make for him throughout his childhood. Gertrude Kapelput did many things in her lifetime, but she never wrote down her recipes, always laughing whenever Oswald asked her to, so he could pass it on to his own chefs when he became the criminal kingpin. She would always laugh, giving his nose a soft pinch, before she would say “recipes are made and found with the heart, Oswald. You will know my food when you taste it, not by what I have written it to be.” She had been right too; no other goulash had tasted as beautiful as hers and he doubted any ever would. But the smells that hit him here reminded him of home, of being safe and cherished and loved all over again. But it wasn’t just the steam nor the memories that caused the prickling of tears in his eyes.

Sat on top of the meat chunks and pasta was a ring. A silver ring with a purple diamond in the centre.

He couldn’t breathe, he could barely even see. His vision was blurred by the tears rising in his eyes. But he could still see the movement of the man sat across from him as he rose from his chair and moved to kneel beside him in his chair. The soft hand that was placed on his cheek gently tilted his head to face him, and the mixture of happiness and fear in his eyes was enough to cause Oswald to break down, grasping onto Ed’s hand as he bawled.

The look of absolute panic that crossed Edward’s face as he cried almost made him laugh, but he kept crying as Ed moved to hold and try and calm him. Oswald couldn’t tell how long they stayed like that, but he knew that his goulash had definitely gone cold by the time he calmed down. 

When he pulled back and removed his monocle to wipe away his tears, Ed reached up and gently took the ring from the dish and wiped away as much of the remnants of food as he could. Then he gently took Oswald’s hand and placed it in the centre. “I’m not quite sure why you’re crying, I hope it’s because I made you happy, but if not, then I want you to still have this anyway. I love you, I’ve been wanting to ask you this for a long time, and I want to make this day and every day after it the happiest day of your life.”

“You IDIOT! I wasn’t crying because I was sad! I was crying because I was happy! Today has been so wonderful, not having to work and getting to relax and be with you! Everything was just so beautiful, you even diverged from your plan just for me and my worries, and to top it all off, you found my mother’s recipe? How did you even manage such a thing? The last person to try was Sofia, and even she only got so close despite her reach and resources. Your goulash, it,” his voice wavered, and he had to take a few deep breaths before continuing, “it felt like I was home again, like I was sat at the table, her dish of goulash in front of me lovingly prepared with her own hands. I felt loved with that dish alone. How did you manage to get so close?”

Edward smiled, gently reaching over and softly trailing a hand through Oswald’s hair in comfort. “I noticed every other time it was made. You had complaints each time, and I noted each one down. I wanted it to be perfect. You always were sentimental, Ozzie, cherishing love and adoration. I regret saying love was a weakness, because your love for your mother, and the love she had for you in return, only made you stronger, made you into the man you were when I first met you.” Ed smiled, and his own eyes got teary behind his glasses, “your love for me, and my love for you, is much the same: it has made us stronger, it has brought us here, to where we are now. We are stronger because of it, and we are at our strongest together.” 

He watched, tears streaming from his eyes again, as Ed got back on one knee, took the ring and his hand and held it out to him. “I’m going to do what I should have done a long time ago: spend the rest of my life making you happy if you’ll let me. Oswald Cobblepot, will you marry me?”

Oswald could only cry and nod happily, the feathers of his coat even brushing some of the tears away with his movements, and he continued to cry and smile till his cheeks hurt as Ed slipped Oswald’s glove off of his hand and slid the ring onto his finger. It was beautiful, it all felt so absolutely perfect, and Oswald couldn’t stop himself from reeling Edward into a kiss. It was messy, wet, and just as perfect as their day had been. 

He pulled back a little while after, breathing heavier than before but still smiling, “I know you planned this whole night, but can we eat now? I am still hungry.” The laughter that Ed let out made Oswald’s heart melt even more than it already had, a chuckle escaping his own lips when Ed leaned in and kissed him again.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not sorry in the slightest. We deserved them getting married or at least engaged and I will scream that for eternity.


End file.
